Carbon is our enemy

True enough but I don't know him personally.

 

Smog starts killing you and your children immediately. CO2 affects mostly your grandkids and beyond.
Both are bad.

Mike

 

Yes, both are bad.

We have been dealing with smog forming pollutants for decades now. We know to reduce them. It is the older cars and plants that are contributing more than their numbers should. Only going to fix that by getting the cars off the road, and making the plants meet current regs. Countries with more lax regulations usually have them because they don't have the wealth or clout to enforce the requirement of cleaner technology.

The only way to really address carbon emissions is to stop burning fossil fuels. Switching to plug ins to address that will also address smog. First, it gets the mobile smog sources out of population centers. Even if the electricity sources are burning something, those smog pollutants will be away from more people. Cleaning up plant emissions, and monitoring them, is easier at a plant than on thousands of ICE cars.

While we've had time to develop solutions to smog, we really don't have the time in regards to carbon.

 

"Even if the electricity sources are burning something, those smog pollutants will be away from more people."

I agree because the modifier 'more' is included. A reduction of harm. But footprints of particulates, nitrogen oxides and (secondary) ozone extend 100 to >1000 km, with particulates' feet being smallest.

There may be no practical place to burn for energy on large scale and avoid externalities on humans. Yet big- burn we shall for several decades.

We know well where the bad things affect humans etc.:

Mapped: The world’s coal power plants in 2020

 

It isn't just fossil fuels being burned. Many plants in Europe have switched to wood from coal.

 

Not necessarily.

A really LOT of corrupt, totally biased folks these days claim to be just the opposite.
You have to be able to UNDERSTAND the observations and the motivation behind them.

In order to know the truth, you have to be able to detect the lies.

Note: That comment isn't directed at the present post......just a general observation.